If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of United States, you would:

be 76.0% less likely to be obese

In United States, 36.2% of adults are obese. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.7% of people.

live 21.4 years less

In United States, the average life expectancy is 80 years (78 years for men, 82 years for women). In Sierra Leone, that number is 59 years (56 years for men, 61 years for women).

Economy

spend 24.2% less on taxes

United States has a top tax rate of 39.6%. In Sierra Leone, the top tax rate is 30.0%.

make 97.3% less money

United States has a GDP per capita of $59,500, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $1,600.

be 2.1 times more likely to be unemployed

In United States, 4.4% of adults are unemployed. In Sierra Leone, that number is 9.1%.

be 4.6 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In United States, 15.1% live below the poverty line. In Sierra Leone, however, that number is 70.2%.

Life

have 2.9 times more children

In United States, there are approximately 12.5 babies per 1,000 people. In Sierra Leone, there are 36.3 babies per 1,000 people.

be 97.1 times more likely to die during childbirth

In United States, approximately 14.0 women per 1,000 births die during labor. In Sierra Leone, 1360.0 women do.

be 11.8 times more likely to die during infancy

In United States, approximately 5.8 children die before they reach the age of one. In Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 68.4 children do.

Basic Needs

be 95.0% less likely to have access to electricity

In United States, 100% of the population has electricity access. In Sierra Leone, 5% of the population do.

be 84.5% less likely to have internet access

In United States, approximately 76.2% of the population has internet access. In Sierra Leone, about 11.8% do.

be 36.9% less likely to have access to improved drinking water

In United States, approximately 99% of people have improved drinking water access (99% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas). In Sierra Leone, that number is 63% of people on average (85% in urban areas, and 48% in rural areas).

Expenditures

spend 42.0% less on education

United States spends 5.0% of its total GDP on education. Sierra Leone spends 2.9% of total GDP on education.

spend 35.1% less on healthcare

United States spends 17.1% of its total GDP on healthcare. In Sierra Leone, that number is 11.1% of GDP.

Geography

see 98.0% less coastline

United States has a total of 19,924 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.

Sierra Leone: At a glance

Sierra Leone is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 71,620 sq km. Democracy is slowly being reestablished after the civil war from 1991 to 2002 that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (about a third of the population). The military, which took over full responsibility for security following the departure of UN peacekeepers at the end of 2005, is increasingly developing as a guarantor of the country's stability. The armed forces remained on the sideline during the 2007 and 2012 national elections, and over the past year have deployed over 850 peacekeepers in the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). As of January 2014, Sierra Leone also fielded 122 staff for five UN peacekeeping missions. In March 2014, the closure of the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL) marked the end of more than 15 years of peacekeeping and political operations in Sierra Leone. The government's priorities include furthering development, creating jobs, and stamping out endemic corruption.

How big is Sierra Leone compared to United States?
See an in-depth size comparison.